Car-seal.



B. G. GEBAUER.

GAP. SEAL.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 25, 1909.

Patented Mar. 22,1910.

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EIVIIL G. GEBAUER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CAR-SEAL.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EMIL Gr. GEBAUER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a new and Improved Car-Seal, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to a seal to be used to secure the doors of a railway freight car or the like, so that they may not be opened without the fact becoming known.

The object of this invention is to provide a simple and eflicient device, which may be cheaply manufactured, and which will serve as a sure preventative of tampering without detection.

The invention consists in the construction and combination of parts, to be more fully described hereinafter and particularly set forth in the claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views, and in which- Figure 1 is a perspective View, showing my device attached to the staple lock on a car door; Fig. 2 is an extended side view of the shackle before being doubled up and inserted in the cap; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section on the line 33 in Fig. 2; Fig. 4. is an extended view, showing one end of the shackle inserted in the cap; Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view through the cap, showing the manner of interlocking the ends of the shackle; and Fig. 6 is a sectional view, taken at right-angles to Fig. 5.

This invention is of the type known as self-locking seals, and consists of a shackle 4., which is made of any suitable material, preferably a strip of sheet metal, such as tin, and which has a plurality of perforations 5 and 6 at one end, and a perforation 7 at the other end. Adjacent to the perforation 7 the strip 4: is formed with notches 8 in its sides, the purpose of which will be described hereinafter.

Just beyond the notches 8, the strip is provided with an offset bend, as at 9, on which is formed a catch 10, which preferably consists of a strip of metal struck out of the surface of the body of the shackle. This catch 10 is adapted to engage the opening 5 in the opposite end of the shackle, as, clearly shown in Figs. 5 and 6. The openings 6 and Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed May 25, 1909.

Patented Mar. 22, 1910.

Serial No. 498,183.

7 are provided in order that the shackle may be weakened at these points, so that it may be readily broken from its fastening when it is desired to open the door to which it is fastened.

A suitable cap 11 of some compressible material, such as drawn soft steel, is provided to inclose the ends of the shackle.

In making up the article, the end of the shackle with the catch 10 thereon is first inserted in the cap 11, and the same compressed thereon so as to leave a sufficient cavity for the opposite end of the shackle to pass into the cap 11. The cap 11 is further compressed at the points 12 and 13, so that portions 14 and 15 of the metal of the cap are squeezed into the notches 8 on the shackle, thereby securely locking the shackle 4 in the cap 11 and preventing its being withdrawn therefrom.

Then it is desired to secure a car door, indicated by the numeral 16, by any suitable lock, such as a staple l7 and a hasp 18, the shackle is passed through the staple and bent thereon, and the free end of the shackle inserted in the cap 11. Vhen this free end has been pushed in far enough to bring the opening 5 over the catch 10, said catch will spring into said opening and securely lock the two ends of the shackle together, preventing them from being withdrawn from the cap 11 without destroying either the shackle or the cap.

There is thus provided a simple and efficient seal, which may be cheaply manufactured, and which will be self-locking, and will not require an expensive and cumbersome compressing device for securing the seal to the lock of a car door.

A suitable inscription may be impressed on the body or the shackle or on the cap 11, whereby a new shackle may not be substituted for the old one without said substitution being detected.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent In a sealing device, the combination with a shackle having weakened portions at each of its ends, and also having notches in the side edges of one of its ends and an opening in the opposite end, a cap adapted to engage said notches whereby said cap is locked to said shackle, an offset portion on said shackle adapted to engage said cap to furthen secure said shackle (0 said cap, aml a catch struck out of the surface 01 said shackle and adapted to engage said opening in the opposite end of said shackle, whereby E the ends of said shackle are automatically locked together Within the cap.

In restnnony whereof I have slgnecl my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

EMIL Gr. GEBAUER.

Vitnesses SAM CAHON, J. BREMNER. 

